Hastings is an unincorporated

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

and agricultural center in St. Johns County,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, United States, southwest of St. Augustine. It was formerly an

incorporated town An incorporated town is a town that is a municipal corporation. Canada Incorporated towns are a form of local government in Canada, which is a responsibility of provincial rather than federal government. United States An incorporated town o ...

, but it was dissolved in 2018 after a vote by residents. The population was 1,262 at the 2020 census, up from 580 at the 2010 census. It is part of the

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Henry Morrison Flagler Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 – May 20, 1913) was an American industrialist and a founder of Standard Oil, which was first based in Ohio. He was also a key figure in the development of the Atlantic coast of Florida and founder ...

built tourist hotels at St. Augustine in the late 19th century, including the Ponce de León Hotel. He needed a local source of fresh vegetables for his guests, so he persuaded Thomas Horace Hastings, his cousin, to develop a farm. A small community evolved into a town, which was named for its founder in 1890. Hastings is known as the "Potato Capital of Florida" with of potato farms, but also produces cabbage, onions, eggplant and ornamental horticulture. Hastings in 1910 was a thriving town that was a stop on the

Florida East Coast Railway The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida, currently owned by Grupo México. Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a p ...

. The population of approximately 1,200 supported several general stores, a bakery, drug stores, meat markets, an ice plant and cold storage. In addition to farming, two companies manufactured barrels and a grist mill ground grain. There was a bank and a hotel, three doctors and a dentist. The town had water and sewer utilities, telephone and telegraph service. The local public school was good.Wilson, Gil
"The Progressive Era to World War II"
Dr. Bronson's St. Augustine History Today the former FEC line is part of the Palatka-to-St. Augustine State Trail, and a trailhead can be found in the community within the Cora C. Harrison Preserve. On November 7, 2017, the voters of Hastings elected to dissolve the city with an 82% majority vote. St. Johns County officially took control of the area on March 1, 2018. The United States Census Bureau designated Hastings as a

in the 2020 census.

Geography

Hastings is located at (29.7180, -81.5081). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town had a total area of , all land.

Climate

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 521 people, 213 households, and 139 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 238 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 52.02%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 43.38%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.58%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 2.11% from other races, and 1.92% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.99% of the population. There were 213 households, out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 15.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.9 males. The median income for a household in the town was $26,635, and the median income for a family was $30,769. Males had a median income of $25,909 versus $20,694 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $14,537. About 15.4% of families and 21.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 27.0% of those under age 18 and 16.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

It is in the St. Johns County School District. Zoned schools include South Woods Elementary School, Gamble Rogers Middle School, and Pedro Menendez High School. The Hastings High School was built in 1924 to provide education for the children of the farmers in the southwest corner of the county.
St. Johns County Public Library, Hastings Branch In 1985 it closed, and the ''Hastings Branch'' of the St. Johns County Public Library is located in this building. Hastings Elementary School was replaced by Hastings Elementary-Junior High School, which occupied the former high school facility, in 1985. In 1992 it dropped its junior high school program. The school, now Hastings Elementary School, was in operation until its 2005 closure. South Woods Elementary opened in the fall of that year, replacing Hastings Elementary. The only public school in the town post-2005 was the ''Hastings Youth Academy'', an

Alternative school An alternative school is an educational establishment with a curriculum and methods that are nontraditional. Such schools offer a wide range of philosophies and teaching methods; some have political, scholarly, or philosophical orientations, wh ...

. St. Johns County Public Library has a library in the former school.

Notable people

* Derrick Ramsey (born 1956), Kentucky Secretary of Education and Workforce Development and former NFL player who played

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

for nine seasons for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders,

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

and

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

.Hitchner, Emelia
"Catching up with a hometown hero"
'' The St. Augustine Record'', June 26, 2016. Accessed July 25, 2019. "Former NFL player Derrick Ramsey can trace nine seasons of professional football, a slew of high school and college championships and a successful government career back to his tiny hometown of Hastings. Hastings, with its bright green fields and hard-working families, was the perfect place for Ramsey to nurture a dream farther than he could toss a football." * Ron Waller, American football player.

References

External links

Hastings
former town website {{authority control Towns in St. Johns County, Florida Towns in the Jacksonville metropolitan area Populated places established in 1890 2018 disestablishments in Florida Former municipalities in Florida Towns in Florida Populated places on the St. Johns River Populated places disestablished in 2018